Asota speciosa
| Specious tiger | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Lepidoptera |
| Family: | Erebidae |
| Subfamily: | Aganainae |
| Genus: | Asota |
| Species: | A. speciosa |
| Binomial name | |
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Asota speciosa (Drury, 1773) |
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| Synonyms | |
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Asota speciosa, the specious tiger, formerly Aganais speciosa, is a moth of the subfamily Aganainae, now regarded as being within the family Erebidae. Formerly it was regarded variously as a member of the Arctiidae, the Hypsidae, and subsequently the family Aganaidae, which was formerly regarded as a family by some authorities. The species is found in Sierra Leone, Mozambique, South Africa and Togo.
The larvae feed on certain latex-rich plants, mainly Ficus species, both indigenous and domestic, but also on poisonous Acokanthera species. They sabotage the latex defences of their host plants by biting partway through the midrib, severing the latex vessels before proceeding to feed on the leaf blade.
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Wikipedia